The Perfect Day
by Genna Stanley
Summary: One Shot SSHG. Fluffy answer to Shiv's 'Hermione breaks a fingernail challenge' Snape has a good day at work and hopes to spend a perfect evening with Hermione.


Disclaimer: I wished I owned them, but I don't. However, I promise to let them out for a bit each day and return home whenever they want to. Definitely in time for Book 6

Severus began his walk toward the gates of Hogwarts. The sun was making its way to the horizon and as the students were currently preparing themselves for dinner, he enjoyed the quiet that surrounded him. The warm June breeze adding to the relaxed calm he currently felt. It wasn't often that he was able to escape the confines of the castle and make it home at a reasonable hour, but today was the exception.

Today had been unrealistically pleasant. Not many days since he had taken the position of Professor of Potions at Hogwarts had been so free of drama. No Quidditch accidents, no exploding cauldrons, no rogue Death Eaters. Even Potter's son was able to answer any question that he had thrown at him during class. Most of all, he hadn't seen or heard from Dumbledore all day. If only there were more educational meetings at the Ministry during the school year to keep the old bat away from him, life would be perfect.

The gates were now within view and ideas of how he could spend his evening began filling his thoughts. It was doubtless that Hermione had began to prepare dinner as they had made a habit of enjoying their meals later in the evening to accommodate his work hours. That left him with a smile in his thoughts. A quiet night alone with his wife. Perhaps he should turn off the floo to prevent any communication from interrupting their time together. Between her work at the Ministry and his hours, they only saw each other for a few hours a day. At least their weekends were typically free of commitments.

It wasn't long after he stepped past the anti-apparition wards that he found himself standing mere meters from the front door of their home in Hogsmeade. It was immediately apparent how Hermione had spent her day off. Along the front of their home was a very colourful selection of planted flowers that hadn't been there that morning. 'I wonder what else she's been up to?', Severus thought as his feet carried him up the incline to their front door.

The noise of the door squeak alerted Hermione to Severus' arrival and she turned from her seat on the chesterfield, "What are you doing home so early?", she asked with an inquiring look upon her face.

Severus made his way over to the chesterfield, claiming the seat beside his wife. "Today could not have been less stressful if I spent the entire day in the bath.". Hermione looked up into his face and snorted.

"That's not saying much, you hate our bath."

"Snorting doesn't become you Hermione.", Severus said reaching along the back of the chesterfield untying the ribbon holding her mass of hair into a ponytail and rubbing the back of her head. "I was merely comparing it to the bath in my old quarters at Hogwarts. Not that small 'thing', in the other room."

Hermione closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his fingertips on her scalp, " Don't change the subject Severus!", she sighed as she began to relax, leaning into him. "What made today so stress free?"

He moved his hand down to the base of her neck, continuing to knead the muscles there. "Just the lack of dunderheads acting like dunderheads. Plus the fact that the illustrious headmaster was not on the premises the entire day."

He gently turned Hermione away from him, to allow room to massage her shoulders with both hands. Her shoulders were tight, the muscles in her neck even tighter. She obviously wasn't having as wonderful a day as he was.

Hermione sighed again, "Do you ever regret giving up the head of Slytherin house and your old quarters when we got married?". Hermione tried to turn to face him, but was stopped by Snape's strong hands.

"Regret? No.". Snape leaned forward and planted a kiss on the back of her head. "It has given me a life outside that castle, something that I didn't realize I needed until I was in the situation. I don't miss being woken up at all hours to deal with sniveling children or the extra paper work, or answering to 'him'. ".

"Are you still angry with Dumbledore for threatening your position when he found out about us?". Snape stopped his hand movement and Hermione turned her body around the face him.

"Hermione, it's more than that. I'd let it go, by Merlin, I've tried. He can't seem to and he brings up our relationship into every argument we have."

Hermione slipped her arms around his neck and pulled herself up to him. "I don't want to argue about him today." She leaned in and tenderly kissed his lips. "If Dumbledore can't get it through his head that nothing transpired between us while I was a student, that is his problem, not ours." Hermione quietly spoke, leaning her forehead against his.

"So, are you going to tell me what has you so uptight today? I haven't felt your muscles that tight in quite awhile." Snape said, trying to change the subject.

Hermione leaned back a bit, bringing her arms with her. Severus then noticed her right index finger wrapped in a small white bandage. He took the hand into his and looked up into her face, waiting for her explanation.

"Oh it's nothing. I had quite a good day in fact. No doubt my muscles are sore from leaning over all day in the garden out front.". Severus began to comment, but Hermione's mouth was too quick, "I know! I know! I could have used magic, but it's not often that I get a full day off from my desk at the Ministry while you're at work and I wanted to do something physical, with no magic." She smiled looking at her husband.

"Then what did you do to your finger?" Snape took the appendage between his fingers and began to peel back the tape."

"That was my only problem of the day. I broke my nail on a rock in the garden." She let him remove the bandage completely. "It broke so that part of the nail bed was exposed. I'm only keeping it covered to protect it. Nothing dire." A grin came to her face at the care he was giving that tiny part of her body.

"So it doesn't hurt then?"

"No Severus, it is just fine." He finally raised his eyes to meet hers and found her grinning back at him.

"But you're injured. Perhaps we should order out for dinner?" She gave him a curious look, "I have a house elf at Hogwarts that owes me a favour." He smirked back.

It wasn't long before dinner arrived, the floo was locked and Severus got to spend the quiet night at home with his wife. Life had never been so uneventful, and he liked it that way.


End file.
